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GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE > Guangzhou, China
Perhaps the most mature
realization of Zaha Hadid’s
signature style to date, the
Guangzhou Opera House is a marvel
of dynamic fluid forms and otherworldly
spatial experiences. Positioned
as twin boulders in an otherwise bleak
urban landscape, this latest edition
to Guangzhou’s developing cultural
repertoire imparts a vigorous tension
to the city, serving as a terrestrial
counterpoint to the deluge of highrise
towers blossoming nearby.
The general composition of spaces
and forms does not stray far from
previous high-profile auditoriums
such as Rafael Moneo’s Kursaal in
San Sebastian, Spain. An expansive
plinth serves as a clean slate,
supporting both a grand auditorium
and a secondary performance hall,
which counterbalance each other in a
choreographed standoff. The negative
savvy designers
> Lower level access from the park
space between these opposing forces is
fraught with tension, made even more
dramatic by the exaggerated cants
and cantilevers on either side. The
sectional manipulation of the plinth
creates a well-orchestrated pedestrian
progression through project, providing
access to the adjacent riverside and
dock.
Over 75,000 pieces of granite clad
the irregular building forms, with
dark grey panels distinguishing the
primary concert hall from the lightergrey
annex building. Triangulated in
a complex hyper-logical arrangement
over the building’s faceted skin, these
rain-screen panels serve as both wall
and roof, while protecting the building
from solar heat gain. Inscribed
onto this skin like giant abstracted
lesions, erratic swaths of curtain wall
illuminate the surface. These massive,
scale-defying window apertures
> A sleek horizontal niche consolidates site lighting
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